Three villages in Mid Ulster have boosted play provision for children through a series of upgrades.

Glenone, Swatragh and the Loup each received an investment of £37,000 from the EU Rural Development 'LEADER' Programme for the works.

A new playpark was delivered in Glenone, while a a new kick about area was created in the Loup and Swatragh's existing playpark received enhancement works.

The programme was delivered by the Mid Ulster Rural Development Partnership on behalf of the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, with Mid Ulster District Council providing 25% of the funding.

Chair of Mid Ulster District Council, Councillor Martin Kearney, visited the villages and commented on the completed works.

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He said: "Glenone, Swatragh and the Loup are the most recent villages to benefit from 37 village renewal projects across the district, supported by the Council and Mid Ulster Rural Development Partnership (Local Action Group).


"Play is an important part of a child's development, helping to build social skills, make new friends and be active all at once. At this time of year especially when kids have returned to school, it's important that they have the chance to play and have fun after a busy day at school. The two newly upgraded play parks and kick about area are fantastic resources to the local community, and I hope that children across Mid Ulster enjoy using them."

Chair of Mid Ulster Rural Development Partnership, Conor Corr, added: "Over the course of this current Rural Development Programme, we will see an investment of over £2.15m in funding directed towards rural towns and villages from across the length and breadth of the district to make them better places to live and work in. This is what village renewal is about – local people making decisions on the actions they believe will be of greatest benefit to the community."

(CM/JG)